Santa Cruz Island...

After spending oodles of days in the studio working with great models , it was time for an outdoor adventure. Landscape painting uses a different set of observational skills and requires time away from home and studio. After months of zooming in on my subjects, I am looking out toward majestic and massive terrain.

This trip was exceptional. The fog that was haunting our summer finally lifted. I was without cell phone and email for 4 days (ahhhh!) and explored to my hearts content. I filled my sketchbook and now want to get started on some new work!

Winter in the Studio

There are seasons in my studio workshop. When the weather is unpredictable and rainy, it is the season to set up great life drawing sessions with beautiful models. A group of artists converge and we set up the model stand and lighting. The music plays in the background while we make our initial marks. I'm always startled when the timer rings so the model (and painters) can take a break. There are few things that hold my attention so intensely that 30 minutes can seem like a minute. The morning will fly into noon and we all are surprised that the time has passed. I am tired, but immensely grateful to have spent 3 hours painting. It takes over 10,000 hours of practice to become a master. Let's see....7,687 minus 3 equals....